To Hire a Planner or Not To Hire?

I get this question all the time, and I get it. People have a hard time investing money in something that is not tangible. If you can’t precisely measure it or hold it in your hand, sometimes it can be difficult to convince those involved in the planning that an event coordinator is with the moolah.

So let me invite you all in on a few of those “oh my gosh” moments I have had as a coordinator that the hosts didn’t know until after the party…..

It’s 11:00 p.m. on a Friday evening. The wedding rehearsal has taken place, toasts were made at dinner and the bride and groom are tucked in bed getting their beauty rest for the next day. Your event coordinator gets an alarming phone call that the DJ for the wedding the next day has just had a heart attack. After she ensures the DJ is doing OK and in good care at a hospital, she goes into emergency plan mode. Since it’s a Saturday in September, most likely everyone is booked. Yes….they ALL are. But luckily, your coordinator knows people in the industry who are looking tirelessly to find a replacement, even though they are currently DJing a different event. They are still working to find someone to fill your DJ’s shoes. Luckily, a friend of your DJ’s friend just happens to do some DJing on the side, and he just happens to be an old co-worker of your event coordinator. He’s booked and all is good again in the wedding world.

…..That is until it’s only an hour before the ceremony when the DJ shows up, and he doesn’t have a cordless microphone for the officiant to use. So, your event coordinator calls a friend, who she knows sings at a local church to drop off a wireless microphone and do a mic check just minutes before the ceremony.

That’s why you need an event planner.

You’ve been obsessing over chivari chairs for your big day. They’re trendy and perfectly compliment the gold chandeliers and accents of the gorgeous ballroom you’re hosting your wedding in. You make the plans, pay for the rentals and you can’t wait to see your picture-perfect room to come together. Since your awesome wedding planner found you a fabulous deal, these chairs are actually being delivered the day of your wedding from St. Louis, which is an hour and a half away from your venue, but even with the rental fee, those chairs are cheaper. While you’re off taking photos with your best girlfriends and posing with your soon-to-be hubby, the chairs are being delivered to the venue and carefully placed in front of 335 of the 370 places you have set. Yes, the delivery company is 35 chairs short. It’s hours before the reception, and local rental places are closed. So, your trusty event coordinator calls the owner of the company to explain they must fix the mistake they made and bring an additional 35 chairs prior to 4:30. She anxiously paces the venue as you all say your “I dos” at a nearby church, and she hustles out to the parking lot to help carry in the stacks of missing chivari chairs when the additionals arrive. All in time for your guests to see the masterpiece you have been imagining since you were a little girl.

That’s why you need an event planner.

You’ve spend thousands of dollars on the perfect day, so you and your future husband can celebrate the beginning of forever. You’ve brought in out-of-town vendors, guests are traveling in from all of the country and you have very high expectations for the day. An hour prior to the reception starting, your event coordinator notices there has been no cake delivery as promised. It seems odd since the baker is a trustworthy person, who she has worked with numerous times. She calls….and calls…..and calls only to get nothing on the other end. With the minutes ticking by and no assurance that the cake is even in route to the venue, your wedding coordinator gets on the phone with HyVee to place an emergency order of white frosted cupcakes, so there’s at least SOMETHING there. She’s about to place the order on her personal credit card when the baker pulls up in front of the venue. She hurries out to the van to see the one of her cakes in pieces all over the back of her van. She breathes a sigh of relief when she realizes it’s not the wedding cake, gives a quick hug to the baker, who has clearly had a rough day, and starts unloading. Your coordinator shuffles the baker in through the back door with the cake, which is put on display in the middle of the room. And the topper is placed just as the first guest walks through the door.

That’s why you need an event planner.

Photo Credit: Catherine Rhodes Photography

OK, you probably see my point now. As much as you plan and plan for the most picturesque wedding day or carefully craft the perfect surprise, there are always things that are uncontrollable. When an event planner is absent, it’s usually friends or family scrambling at the last minute to make things come together. Your guests are there to celebrate WITH you, not put out fires FOR you. Hire the event planner to deal with those things and cheers to your milestone knowing that everything will be taken care of for you.

Oh yeah, and she’ll also hold your bouquet when you’re taking pictures without it 🙂

Nice to Meet You

I'm Kristi Ruprecht, the voice and face behind Kristi Uncorked. I am an Event Specialist by profession and all-around party lover and hostess by choice. I'm a new mom who loves writing and sharing experiences and ideas. Keep coming back to read all about life's good, bad and oh my gosh moments. Thanks for stopping by! Photo by: Catherine Rhodes PhotographySearch for:

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